From food to medicine, what you can and cannot bring to Australia

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From April 17 2019, visitors to Australia failing to declare prohibited items might have their visas shortened or canceled.

Many of the foods, medicine plants & animal products are strickly prohibited to bring into Australia by Australia’s strict bio-security laws, due to the threat of introducing serious pests and diseases into Australia, devastating our valuable agricultural and tourism industries, as well as our unique environment. Due to new rule introduced, the airport authorities can now shorten or cancel visas, if someone fail to declare prohibited items upon entry to the country.

CAN YOU BRING IT IN? A guide to what you can and can’t bring in to the country​​​​​​.​ When you’re travelling overseas​ or importing items, you need to know that some items can’t be brought back with you and for others you need to get permission.So before you send across a list of goodies for your family and friends to bring to Australia, or travel back to Australia from your home country and on a temporary visa, take a look at what you can and cannot bring into Australia.

Food

Food items brought into Australia must be declared on Incoming Passenger Cards when arriving by plane. Biosecurity officers may need to inspect some of the food you’re bringing with you. While you are allowed to bring coffee, biscuits, bread, cake, chocolate, maple syrup and oil, one needs to declare if they have brought tea, spices, pickles, rice, nuts, dairy products with them.

For more details, check ABF website.

Medicines

Medicines for personal use are allowed. However, one must carry a letter or copy of the prescription (written in English) from the doctor to certify that the medicine has been prescribed to treat a medical condition and ensure the quantity of the medicine does not exceed three months supply.

“You should leave your medicine in its original packaging and declare it to the Australian Border Force when you arrive,” the Australian Border Force (ABF) advises.

For more details, check ABF website.

Plants, flowers and seeds

Live plants are not permitted.

“Most live plants must not be imported to Australia unless the importer has a valid import permit from the Department of Agriculture and Water Resources,” the ABF advises. For seeds, one must declare it if they are carrying seeds.

For more details about the list, check ABF website.

Seasonal or festive items

Many migrants bring special items related to festivals like Diwali, Rakhi and Lohri to Australia. The ABF strongly advises one “declare anything you are bringing or sending so that it can be inspected by our staff at the border.” The ABF advises not to bring fresh fruits, flowers, dried fruit, nuts and sweets like burfi, ras malai, rasgulla and pedas.

For more details, check ABF website.

WHAT IF YOU ARE CARRYING A PROHIBITED ITEM? When traveling to Australia you will be provided with an Incoming Passenger Card by the crew of your aircraft or cruise vessel.

“This is a legal document. You must mark YES on your card to declare if you are carrying certain food, plant material or animal items. You can take these declared goods with you to the clearance point where they will be assessed by a Department of Agriculture and Water Resources biosecurity officer and may be inspected. Alternatively, you can voluntarily dispose of food, plant material or animal items in bins located in the terminal,” the Department of Agriculture advises.

WHAT IF YOU FAIL TO DECLARE? A biosecurity officer may inspect your baggage, even if you do not declare any goods. They may use X-ray or a detector dog. You must declare or dispose of any goods with a biosecurity risk before inspection. If you do not or you make a false declaration on the Incoming Passenger Card, you:

• may be caught
• may be subject to civil penalties
• may be prosecuted, fined more than A$420,000 and imprisoned for up to 10 years and a get criminal record.
• You will not be penalised under the Biosecurity Act 2015 if you declare all goods, even if they are not allowed into Australia.

From April 17 2019, new rules state that if a visitor fails to declare anything that cannot be imported, the officers at immigration clearance points may shorten or cancel their visa. ABF says the people found guilty of not following these rules may be prevented from returning to Australia for three years.

“Persons whose visas are canceled under these circumstances may be turned around and returned and will be prevented from being granted a visa to return to Australia for three years except under compelling or compassionate circumstances,” ABF spokesperson told.

Source: Australian Border Force website & SBS Hindi